Tag: travel over 50

I love going on holidays. What I don’t like is the getting ready. I get quite stressed about the packing in case I leave anything behind. My other big stress is getting to the airport. To drive or catch a bus? Where to park? Quite honestly I don’t normally want to be around myself the day before travel.

The Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown offer a service called #StayParkFly – you can stay over at the hotel the night before you fly, and leave your car there. They then offer a shuttle service dropping you right at the airport.

I was delighted to collaborate with the Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown on our recent visit to Turkey. We were flying at 6am on Sunday morning so needed to be at the airport at 4am. And, yes the shuttle bus was available at this hour of the night.

This was such a cool experience that I decided to dedicate a full blog post to what I am now calling the first day of the holiday.

Day 1 of my Holiday

On Saturday afternoon we took a leisurely drive up to Dublin arriving at the hotel mid-afternoon. I have visited the Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown before and I know the rooms are lovely but we were given a real treat and upgraded to a suite. I felt like a movie star! We settled in with a cup of tea and some lovely little cakes. I stretched out like a star fish on the bed and himself watched a little TV.

Instead of my usual stress I felt so relaxed, like I was on holiday already. And what better way to celebrate the beginning of a holiday than a wonderful G&T! The bar is so lovely and welcoming and all the staff were super helpful.

We needed an early night (as we had an extremely long day ahead of us) so we had an early dinner. A delicious juicy steak for himself and some yummy pumpkin ravioli for me, before heading off to our gorgeous room for a bubble bath and an early night.

Day 2 of our holiday

The next morning I woke up and instead of being stressed, I was excited! The attitude of the staff at this hotel is fantastic. Before 4am we came downstairs with our bags to be greeted with a smile, and two little bags with take-away breakfast of croissants, muffins, fruit and water. Our cheerful driver Michael set off for Dublin Airport – next stop for us – Marmaris, Turkey!

You know the feeling when you come home from holiday. You have been travelling hours on a mini bus and a budget airline and you are beyond tired. This is normally the time when you have to either climb on a bus for another few hours, or play the game of find the car in among hundreds of cars in the long-term parking. By this stage my fatigue normally has me close to tears.

What a difference this was. Despite our plane being delayed, the cheerful driver Michael was waiting for us, he had even called ahead to check that we knew where to find him.

I can honestly say that the wonderful service from the staff at the Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown contributed to a wonderful holiday.

Kerry xx

Our stay at the Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown was gifted to us. Thank you very much! Thank you also to Sinead from the Irish Blogger Agency.

p.s. The next installment of our holiday in amazing Turkey will be coming soon! And it includes my take on a Turkish Bath!

Like this:

I love to travel. There is something about visiting a place that is not home that captures my imagination and quite simply excites me. I had to find a way of travelling on a budget.

We are on a very limited budget. I am in fact on a medical pension which makes it even harder to travel, but not impossible.

My excuse was that I couldn’t’ afford a holiday

For many years I was the person that said I can’t afford a holiday. I looked on with envy as many people jetted off to sunnier climates and felt frustrated and a tiny bit left out. What I didn’t realise is that there are a few tricks and techniques which make it perfectly possible to travel – on an extremely limited budget.

Book out of season – it’s one of the advantages of being a little older.

Be prepared to trawl the internet – the deals are there to be had, you simply have to spend time looking. Our favourite site is www.loveholidays.com

Be flexible with dates, and places, you might have to compromise a little but I promise it is worth it.

Let go of the 5-Star dreams. We travel on a budget and understand that if you aren’t paying 5-star rates you won’t get a 5 star hotel. However, you might get a really clean self-catering apartment in a perfect location.

Choose self-catering. Although we have tried various options, but if I am honest I do prefer self-catering. It is fun going to the supermarket and figuring out what might be delicious. It is also a lot cheaper. A bottle of wine, or even a bottle of water from a supermarket is more affordable than one in a restaurant.

Eating out is cheaper than at home – just remember to do your research. Trip Advisor is great for knowing just exactly what you are getting. I love the European café culture – so am always happy to pay for a great coffee and a pastry and sit and write in my journal or simply watch the world go by.

Save! Yes, no matter how cheap it is savings are going be needed. I am personally very happy to have baked beans on a baked potato for dinner for a few nights and know that I can make the holiday payment.

Choose to pay monthly. I find it quite difficult to save up a lump sum, but many holiday operators offer the option of paying monthly. We allocate 10 Euros each of our weekly budget to paying off holidays. It is easy enough to find 10 Euro and we are heading to our third European holiday this weekend.

Research transport options. You might be able to pick up a bus pass for the week for as little as 10 Euro. I love to walk on holiday but sometimes you need to catch a ride.

Think of the extras. I used to get caught by extras like check-in fees, and parking. Parking can be quite a chunk of spending money if you don’t get it right. One option would be to stay at an affordable Dublin hotel which offers a shuttle to the airport and parking while you are away. We are delighted to be staying at the Carlton Hotel Blanchardstown before leaving for Turkey. An added advantage is that we need to be at the airport at 4am. This way will be rested and ready for our holiday.

Look into the local currency. If you need to convert your spending money before you go. (And yes you guessed it I save that too for a few weeks before the trip)

Check out mobile phone and internet access with your service provider. The last thing you want is a rude bill on your return.

It is exciting to go on holiday and the best part is when everything is sorted and paid for before hand. I am off to pack my bag, tick off my checklist and get ready for Turkey.